The ceiling approaches.
Grace Seeker gazed with an indifferent expression at the ceiling that was trying to crush her. A face full of red and blue muscle fibers protruded from the surface of the ceiling. It was a grotesque face with no eyes, nose, or ears—only a massive mouth.
It opened its mouth wide with a crack and swallowed her whole.
-Crash!
The tremendous pressure and sharp teeth was nothing short of a process designed to kill the opponent.
Archbishop Mirak was watching this, thinking that at least a corpse should remain, when—
-Whoosh!
Something black and pointed pierced through and burst out of the massive lump of flesh that had crushed Grace.
The thing spinning violently resembled a double-helix drill used for boring into the ground. Soon, the drill that had completely emerged began to unwind sequentially from the tip like unraveling thread. Grace appeared unharmed, without a single scratch.
Grace squeezed the blood from her hair and flicked it toward Mirak. The tips of the flying blood droplets transformed into sharp awls.
This was blood manipulation, one of the vampire's powers.
It was the primary reason vampires once reigned as nightmares over humans in the past. Without the power to resist external abilities, blood manipulation would tear apart all the flesh, organs, and muscles from within the body through the blood inside.
But this opponent was no ordinary human. They were chosen beings who had transcended humanity by receiving baptism from Red Eternity. Moreover, blood, which could be called the source of life, was rather their specialty. To reverse that control and use it as an element to attack them was—
"What blatant provocation."
Archbishop Mirak extended his hand. The blood awls flying toward him stopped in mid-air. The stopped awls rotated 180 degrees and aimed at Grace Seeker.
"How dare you challenge me, who has received baptism from Red Eternity, to a battle over blood dominion?"
Archbishop Mirak was about to say he would correct that impudence when he belatedly realized that his peripheral vision had been dyed black. He also realized that the darkness surging around him was the shadows and hair that Grace Seeker manipulated.
'When exactly?'
-Crack!
The shadows tightened with an eerie sound.
However, Grace's expression was not entirely satisfied. Countless streams of blood flowing through the gaps in her hair pooled on the floor, then retreated in one direction, forming a puddle of blood.
From within the blood puddle, Archbishop Mirak slowly rose, head first, with a slurp. He appeared completely unharmed, without a single wound. As expected of an archbishop of the Eternal Church, his vitality was truly transcendent. She had sliced his entire body thin like vegetables and chopped it up, yet he transformed into blood and regenerated once again.
“No, more precisely, you transformed your entire body into blood at the moment of crisis to evade. How impressive.”
Physical transformation was a characteristic similar to vampires who transform into shadows, bats, and mist. Considering that the corrupted ones of the Eternal Church usually undergo bodily mutations, an archbishop would probably be able to take any form he desired.
Despite Grace's admiration, Archbishop Mirak's expression showed no sign of relaxing. Bubbles began to boil on the surface of the blood puddle beneath his feet, then a tremendous torrent of blood burst forth like groundwater and surged toward Grace.
-Whoooosh!
Grace leaped gracefully, jumping over the wave of blood, and shot toward Archbishop Mirak like a hawk snatching prey.
Red skeletons rose one after another from the surging torrent of blood around them and headed for Grace, but when she gracefully waved her right hand, countless black lines were drawn in the air.
The skeletons caught by the black lines were chopped to pieces and swept away by the torrent of blood.
'Wire?'
Archbishop Mirak's transcendent pupils immediately recognized what it was. Black silk. More precisely, it was Grace Seeker's hair.
Originally, she could move her hair freely, but it was entirely possible for her to wrap it around her fingertips and use it as a sharp weapon like this.
"Humph!"
Archbishop Mirak snorted and retreated. If he fell at this momentum, he would end up in the ridiculous situation of falling into the blood puddle by himself.
At that moment, Grace's movement changed. Her figure sharply turned in mid-air and pursued the retreating Archbishop Mirak. Grace moved as if floating through the air without falling, at a height almost touching the torrent.
-Gwoooooh!
Red skeletons burst out of the torrent like piranhas and rushed at her.
-Slash!
But piles of broken skeleton bones fell where she passed. Grace was stepping lightly through the air, and upon closer inspection, she was stepping on hair she had laid out like wire beforehand, using it as a springboard for movement.
"Insolent wench!"
The torrent of blood split left and right with a crack like the parting of the sea, forming massive walls on both sides.
"Oh my."
When Archbishop Mirak clapped his spread hands together with a bang, the waves that had risen to pierce the sky moved in exactly the same way.
The two waves collided, and the red skeletons remaining inside devoured their prey without leaving a single piece of flesh. It was a horrific attack that would literally cast a living person into a living hell.
-Thunk!
A black stem burst through Archbishop Mirak's chest. It soon spread like roots throughout Archbishop Mirak's body, binding his entire form.
"Grugh!"
Before he knew it, Grace Seeker was behind Archbishop Mirak. Archbishop Mirak immediately transformed his body into blood and became one with the torrent, disappearing.
And shortly after, Archbishop Mirak rose from within the torrent.
"Hmm. Really persistent."
Grace crossed her arms as if troubled. Even though the surprise attack had succeeded, it didn't seem to have dealt proper damage. Well, judging by his expression, his pride had definitely been scratched, but that wasn't a decisive factor in determining the outcome.
On the other hand, Archbishop Mirak did not express anger. In the continuing exchange of attacks, he clearly realized who was at a disadvantage.
Although he had completely regenerated, he had allowed Grace to attack him several times. On the other hand, Grace remained unharmed without a single wound despite Archbishop Mirak's attacks.
While no conclusion had been reached, it was quite obvious how much difference there was in skill between the two.
"Hmm. I had some expectations since you're an archbishop, but you're somewhat lacking compared to what I thought. Rather disappointing, I should say. That test subject was actually more dangerous."
Grace honestly expressed her impressions from fighting Archbishop Mirak. She had thought that someone at the archbishop level would have hidden techniques, but even without revealing them, would display transcendent combat power.
But when she actually fought him, Archbishop Mirak had almost no knowledge of combat.
Rather, that test subject she had fought last time felt more threatening.
Archbishop Mirak did not respond to those words. He had no intention of responding to such obvious provocation. Anyway, this space was under his dominion. No matter how strong Grace was, her stamina and vitality wouldn't be infinite.
Time was on his side, so if he continued to press forward with this momentum—
————!!!
Archbishop Mirak's expression became horribly distorted by some wave that echoed in his mind. Although his expression had been stiff and he hadn't shown his emotions much, this time he had no such luxury.
'Bishop Fedilac is dead.'
The death cry that Bishop Fedilac let out as he died reached even Archbishop Mirak. Archbishop Mirak's pupils shook greatly.
'Of all things, Bishop Fedilac, who was in the safest place in the world, is dead?'
Bishop Fedilac was under Archbishop Phillis' command, so he had little contact with him. However, he knew that among the bishops, his ability to newly mutate and create corrupted beings was outstanding, so he received much attention from the Cardinal. He also knew that he was hiding deep within a maze-like complex spawning ground.
Therefore, even in the current situation, Bishop Fedilac was the safest bishop from enemy attacks. Moreover, he knew how to protect himself and had countless corrupted beings and traps around him, so there was hardly any chance he would die under normal circumstances.
'No, someone at the bishop level wouldn't die from ordinary attacks. The fact that Bishop Fedilac died means—'
It's him. That knight in white armor. The one who wounded the Cardinal and interfered with his grand plan—their natural enemy and the greatest danger of this era.
Bishop Fedilac had died at his hands.
"I suppose the time for playing around ends here."
Archbishop Mirak decided this couldn't continue. Grace Seeker's vitality as a true-blood vampire was very tempting, but not enough to covet while putting aside important matters.
"From now on, I'll kill you with full power and then go deal with the others."
"Hmm. Something about your momentum has changed. But do you think I'll go down easily just because of that?"
Grace said that, but she instinctively knew it would not be an easy fight. Archbishop Mirak's momentum had changed. And at the same time, the surrounding space itself had become slightly strange in atmosphere.
Archbishop Mirak's body floating in the air twisted bizarrely. His limbs elongated, and countless tentacle bundles sprouted from his back like a mane.
He, who had appeared as a benevolent old man, became a monstrous aberration.
'It's not just his appearance that changed. Something more has been added.'
That final hidden card must be Archbishop Mirak's true power.
Archbishop Mirak's face, which had become like old tree bark, turned toward Grace.
Just as he was about to move his grotesquely grown limbs—
-Crash!
A massive shadow that came from somewhere struck his face violently. Archbishop Mirak, caught off guard by the sudden surprise attack, was sent flying far away.
Grace recognized the person who had suddenly intervened and opened her eyes wide.
"Oh my. Isn't that Kudan?"
"Sister. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. But it looks like you've been through quite a rough fight."
Kudan, whose clothes were torn here and there, silently nodded. Still, now that they had joined forces like this, nothing could be more reassuring.
Then Kudan turned his head and stared in the direction where Archbishop Mirak had flown.
Archbishop Mirak, who had been sent flying far away, appeared with creaking steps. His face, half blown away by Kudan's punch, regenerated at rapid speed.
"I hit him with the intent to kill."
Archbishop Mirak looked at the newly appeared Kudan and grinned.
[Yes. Having one more thing to eat is fortunate in the midst of all this.]
He didn't speak aloud but used words that echoed in his mind. The entire space rumbled as if representing his voice. Although Bishop Fedilac was dead, there was a newly appointed archbishop above whom the Cardinal had paid special attention to.
Honestly, he wasn't pleased that some green rookie had suddenly received baptism and taken the position. But considering that power and potential alone, he was the next cardinal candidate, so he should be able to handle that knight well.
Archbishop Mirak decided to cast aside unnecessary worries and focus on the enemies before him, trusting that Archbishop Phillis would handle things well on his own.
"Hiiiiek! D-don't come!"
Phillis desperately stepped backward while screaming. He swung his transformed right arm. It was an arm modeled after a werewolf, similar to Delford's.
Sharp wolf claws flew along that trajectory. Osian swung his Starlight Sword and easily deflected them.
The countless slashing attacks crossing through space were useless before Osian's swordsmanship, shield, and armor. Phillis felt fear at the sight of Osian approaching without stopping.
"What the hell are you! What the hell are you?!"
He had received power from an outer god. Red Eternity was a transcendent being that ruled beyond distant worlds. The power directly bestowed by such a being was enough to change this world.
Then why was he being pushed back like this by a mere individual, not even a great army led by a nation?
He had the makings to go beyond the next cardinal to even reach the position of pope serving Red Eternity. He had been confident that there was nothing in the world to fear.
Yes. He had literally seized freedom. From the disease that tormented him, from his sister's oppressive attention, from the city's laws that had dragged him to the battlefield against his will.
From the life of an oppressed and dominated invalid. To the position of an absolute ruler looking down upon the world.
It should have been so.
"Don't come!!!"
With Phillis' seizure-like scream—
-Slash!
An eerie sound was heard as his leg was severed. His reverse-jointed leg, desperately trying to escape, rolled on the floor pathetically.
The cut cross-section wouldn't regenerate. Phyllis frantically tried to tear at the cross-section, but Osian didn't just stand by and watch.
-Swish!
The pure white cloak moved and grabbed both of Phyllis's arms. At the same time, hot starlight flames arose from the cloak and burned his wrists.
-Slash!
Osian's sword danced and cut off Phillis' remaining leg as well. With his arms burned black and both legs severed, Phyllis became like a taxidermied insect.
Osian pressed his Starlight Sword against Phillis' neck.